Need some advice on building a duck pond.....

[LittleChickenRacingTeam]

How big & how deep, for like 2 small call ducks?

 

[Bubba]

The real question is how big CAN you make it. Ducks will take any amount of water you give them. How much money do you plan to spend on it? Do you want a pond (with plants, semi clear water) or do you want a duck pond (muddy muddy water). Are you planning filters, laying down a plastic, clay bottom or cement/shotcrete? You could just dig a hole 3 feet deep 6x6 and they would be happy. Thou bigger is better.

Bubba

 

[Fancy Feather Poultry]

Get a plastic kiddy pool, dig it a hole just big enough to fit it the kiddy pool up to the rim, place the kiddy pool in the hole and fill the kiddy pool with water, and WALAH! a pond!

 

[Bubba]

Silkelovr thats a horrible idea! I was looking forward to hearing him complain how hard it is to dig a 3 foot deep hole thats 6x6

Thou the plastic one would be alot easier to clean hrm


Bubba

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Like Bubba says, it really depends upon:
1. how much you want to spend
2. how big you want it to be

We have built ponds using pondliner and most recently with several layers of (cheap) 10 mil thick plastic sandwiched with sandy loam and topped with sandy loam. So far it is holding up well.

In our experience a man-made duck pond will be:
1. muddy as all get out
2. plant-less, unless you can protect the plants from the ducks.

2' deep is sufficiently deep, in our experience. Two ducks won't need a very wide pond, but you never know if you'll end up getting more ducks . . . .

The rule of thumb with pond building is to always make it as big as you can.

 

[Flufnstuffs~FluffySilkies]

Hi All,
GOOD IDEA - I have used the baby pools they do break over time.

Here is what we did for our mini ducks.
Go to a lumber store and buy a mini pond they are thick and last longer.
We bought three.
A 13 gallon
A 35 Gallon
A 100 Gallon
We cut a hole on the bottoms added a drain & Plug ran a pipe over the bank
and into the ditch. when we want to drain it we just pull the plugs.
wash and reflll

CAN YOU SEE THE 35 Gallon IN THIS PICTURE??

HERE IS THE 100 GALLON

 

[LittleChickenRacingTeam]

I guess I should have been more specific. We have an existing pond that you can see in this ariel view taken from a kite in the summer of 2006.

The problem is this year, with the lack of rain, it dried up in June. The property is sold, but I have rented it back from the developers for a year while they get the necessary zoning changes to build.

The pond was only about 3-4 ft deep & full of silt. If I don't catch the winter snow & spring run off, my well will go dry as well. The well is about 10 yards from the pond. I hired a contractor at $1,000/day to dig it out to about 10 ft deep & make it larger. They have been here 2 weeks. So I guess what I'm wanting to know, is if this will be adequate for a couple ducks?

 

[DrakeMaiden]

OMG!

I'm sorry to hear about your water problems.

I don't know if anyone could predict how well the water would last in the pond, however you can limit evaporation by keeping the width of the pond as small as possible and by shading the pond with vegetation or whatnot. If you want to maximize rain accumulation, you might consider adding a tarp around the outside perimeter that would catch the water that would otherwise fall on the grass and drain it into the pond. Do you have natural pondweed in your pond? It would probably help limit evaporation and also feed the ducks! They love duckweed/pondweed.

 

[Flufnstuffs~FluffySilkies]

Thats a very nice REAL pond. Small but nice. Plenty of room for a Dozen BIG Ducks.

If I had that I would get the 2 swans I always wanted.

For now I will have to be happy with my mini Ducks and my mini Fake Pond.

Melanie